Jamie Baker on what it takes to ensure Wimbledon runs smoothy

Despite being only 38 years old, Baker has already completed more than a few chapters of his life.
His first incarnation saw him become a very good, but perhaps not great, professional tennis player. Hampered by illness and injury, his highest world ranking was 185. A contemporary of Andy Murray, Baker's playing highlight was a superb, although ultimately futile, performance against Andy Roddick in round one of Wimbledon in 2012, with several notable Davis Cup performances also high points.
Disillusioned, Baker hung up his racquet in 2013, at the age of 26.
Jamie Baker (l) was a Davis Cup teammate of Andy Murray (middle) (Image: Clive Brunskill/ Getty Images) His next chapter saw the Scot move into banking, but always had the intention of returning to tennis someday.
Rejoining the tennis world came far earlier than he expected.
In 2018, Baker returned to the All England Club but this time not as a player, rather as Head of Tennis relations.
He obviously impressed because just two years later, he became tournament director of Wimbledon.
Baker's route from the wet and windy tennis courts of his native Glasgow to running the greatest tennis tournament in the world is not something he typically contemplates but when probed about whether or not this is the direction he envisaged his life would take, he admits it borders on the unbelievable.
'I don't often think about the fact that I'm running this massive, prestigious tournament until people ask me about it and then I stop and think, wow, this is pretty cool,' he says.
'I remember learning a kick serve in the pouring rain at Broomhill Tennis Club so to go on to play at Wimbledon and be lucky enough to have a 10 year playing career was great, but I never quite get to the level where I could have a really good financial footing, or want to continue until my mid-30s.
'When I stopped playing, I had an interest in a lot of different things and I wanted to show that a lot of the skills I'd developed as an athlete could be applied elsewhere so while I went into banking initially, my goal was always to come back to tennis.
'I believed that having a playing background and some business experience would be a really good combination but I hadn't envisaged that I would be coming back to tennis as quickly as I did so I just feel so privileged to be in this position now. It is incredible.'
This year's Wimbledon will be Baker's fifth as tournament director, and the next few weeks will be chaotic, exhausting, joyous, stressful and every other emotion in between.
Jamie Baker looks down onto Wimbledon's courts (Image: Getty Images)
The qualifying tournament begins on Monday, with the main draw beginning the following Monday and while there are many people who contribute to the tournament running smoothly, the buck, ultimately, stops with Baker.
Any challenge, problem, incident or question that arises - it all lands on Baker's desk.
Keeping the tournament running smoothly is, unsurprisingly, quite a task but Baker remains steadfast in his belief that his background as a player is a hugely significant factor in the success he's had in the role so far and will, he hopes, continue to have this year.
'In this job, you have to deal with different things all the time and actually having been an athlete is very helpful because I have that mindset of going to bed every night and thinking about what went well, what didn't go well and what I can do to improve the next day. You need that mindset as an athlete and that really helps with this job.'
Of all the thoughts that will pass through Baker's head in the coming days and weeks, there will be one constant; the weather.
There's isn't a soul who's unfamiliar with the havoc the rain can wreak on the Wimbledon fortnight and although recent years have seen roofs be installed on Centre Court and Court One which helps ease the anxiety somewhat, Baker admits he remains consistently preoccupied by the prospect of rain.
The weather may be outwith his control but what is very much within his control is the playing schedule.
Who plays where and when is a constant touch paper issue and Baker admits his office is regularly occupied by players who want something different from what he's willing to provide.
'Scheduling is tricky because it's impossible to please everybody,' he says. '
'Different players are pushing for different things and every year, there's players at my door asking for things or wanting things changed.
'I would say if there was a main culprit but in the time I've been here, there's honestly not been one particular player who I think 'oh no, not them again'. The conversations I have directly with players, 99% of the time, are really respectful and civil. Often, they're making a really good argument but we have to make a final decision - it doesn't make their point any less valid but we can only play so many matches on each court each day.'
Carlos Alcaraz will defend his men's singles title at Wimbledon (Image: Simon Bruty)
The tournament is not all stresses and strains, though, even for Baker whose responsibility it is to ensure things run smoothly.
Wimbledon retains a magic that few sporting venues across the globe can rival and seeing the visiting fans, as well as the players, experience that magic does, he insists, make the hundreds of hours of preparation worth it.
'It's like a swan, isn't it? The people visiting don't see the frantic work behind the scenes and we don't want them to see that. We just want them to have that jaw-dropping moment of 'oh my goodness' when they walk into Wimbledon,' he says.
'The build-up to the main draw starting is really special. The energy around the place is incredible.
'And when the gates open on the first morning of the tournament and the ground starts filling up - that's the point where you think okay, Wimbledon is starting and that's when I think wow, I'm so fortunate to be doing this job.
"I don't get the chance to watch much tennis during the fortnight but I do try to sneak out onto Centre Court or Court One at some point to take it in. You've got to take a few minutes to enjoy this place and enjoy the tennis because this tournament is just incredible.'
This year's Wimbledon brings something new in that it's the first in the post-Andy Murray era. With the Scot having hung up his racquet last autumn, the tournament will now have to find another main attraction and although Baker admits it will take some getting used to not having Murray grace the grass courts, he's unflinchingly confident that despite the absence of the former champion in a playing capacity, there's nothing to worry about.
'Having no Andy Murray this year will be strange for Wimbledon and it'll be strange for me personally,' he says.
Andy Murray played his last-ever Wimbledon last summer (Image: Getty Images) 'Doing his farewell last year was emotional for so many people and I certainly found it emotional because him and I have that personal connection having known each other since we were kids.
'The thing with sport, though, is it moves on and this year we have so many great players in the draw.
'Andy played such a big part over the past 20 years in building the hype around the tournament and the interest that he's created passes on to the next generation. Now there's Jack Draper, who's already top five in the world, and the British public will get right behind him.
'But both men's and women's tennis have a lot of players who are very exciting to watch so I think I'm safe in predicting it'll be a great tournament again this year.'

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